Thursday, September 28, 2006

The boys are releasing a 3 CD set of their infamous Colorado shows from 1988. They were recorded live in Telluride, CO at the Roma 7/29/88, 7/30/88, 8/4/88 and 8/5/88 and Fly Me To The Moon Saloon 8/3/88. Release date is October 31st and is available for pre-order.

Disc Two:1. Fluffhead2. Run Like An Antelope3. Sneaking Sally Thru The Alley4. Light Up Or Leave Me Alone6. I Know A Little7. The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday8. Avenu Malkanu9. The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday10. Flat Fee11. McGrupp And The Watchful Hosemasters12. Alumnni Blues13. A Letter To Jimmy Page14. Alumni Blues

Trey Anastasio added five shows in California to his Decemeber schedule including two nights at the Warfield in San Francisco. I might try to see the Wiltern show in Hollyweird. Trey also added three shows in early November.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

"Pure sickness," as Daddy would say. After two nights at historic Radio City Music Hall, the boys were finally ready to let loose as Jimmy Herring solidified his place among the most dedicated Widespread Panic fans. I don't think George McConnell ever got an iota of support compared to the outpour of enthusiasm that the fans in the crowd gave Herring last night. And he deserved it.

When you get a chance to hear the show, listen to Greta. High energy. The crowd went berserk. And Herring ripped the shit out of that jam. The last night of their three show run might have been their best performance as they cranked out fan favorites Space Wrangler, One Arm Steve, Greta, Driving Song, and Chilly Water. Not to mention an old school tune in Walkin and a couple of tunes off of their latest album and a cover of Dr. John's I Walk On Guilded Splinters.

Bruce and I arrived early. I did more pre-show drinking and got to my floor seat around 8pm. We were in the first section to the left of the sound board. We had a good area with the exception of the nazi-like presence of the security guards. I saw them bust at least 30 people for smoking. They'd walk down the long aisle and five minutes later they were pushing someone out. One older hippie got caught up in their sting as he puffed down on a one hitter. I told Bruce to keep an eye out for the suits. They actually made it easy because when they'd be leaving the floor to escort someone out, that allowed you a couple of minutes to quickly smoke.

Radio City Music Hall has some of the best acoustics out of any venue I've seen a concert in... and I've seen well over a thousand concerts over the last 15 years. None of the venues compare to RCMH. Some of the best shows I've seen included Phish and Beck at RCMH and you can add Widespread Panic to that list.

First set started out with a one-two punch of Space Wrangler > Walkin. I got immediate flashbacks of my introduction to Widespread Panic when I lived in Atlanta for four years during college. Those were the Panic songs I first listened to over 15 years ago while I smoked cheaped Mexican weed out of three foot bongs and drank too much Jim Beam. I might have saved those epic tunes to close the set, but the boys wanted to get the show started with a couple of heavy hitters and crowd favorites.

The Saturday night crowd was much more rowdy than the two prior nights. It was also the most crowded of all three shows. Everyone was ready to party and the boys did not disappoint. Beginning a show with Space Wrangler reminded of when Phish opened up the 12.11.99 Philly show with Harry Hood then ripped into Mike's > Simple > Weekapaug. What a sick show! You don't expect a band to begin a concert with a power song like Space Wrangler. A rare treat.

The highlight of the first set was the One Arm Steve > Christmas Katie > Thought Sausage sandwich. Bruce dug One Arm Steve which is one of my favorite Panic tunes. Christmas Katie kicked my ass and I love the heavy metal funk of Thought Sausage. Dave Schools picked it up and Todd kept wailing away on drums.

Ribs & Whiskey has become one of my favorite songs. The band reintroduced it during 2003 and it has slowly become a staple. I particularly dug the funky version at Vegoose and I also caught a juicy one this summer at Red Rocks. Even the lyrics are a return to their good old boy southern rock roots... "Ribs and whiskey making my body feel tight."

I could think of three other Panic songs I wanted to hear besides Holden Oversoul > Travelin Man > Aunt Avis. But that's what they opened with and I was content. I love it when a band plays songs I might not have picked or perhaps didn't want to hear, but they win me over with a hot version.

Second Skin > Greta > Driving Song was the highlight of the second set. or some reason the first 1/3 of Second Skin still bothers me, but I freakin' dig the last 2/3 of the song. I cannot explain that. Like I said before Greta was the highlight of the night and the the show run. JoJo and Herring were the MVPs of Greta. And Driving Song is a classic that makes me miss Mikey. I forgot the name of that Panic DVD I saw a few years ago... but Mikey and JB played an acoustic version of Driving Song as they two sat on their porch in Georgia trading licks.

The drums jam featured six or seven musicians on all sorts of percussion, banging away like madmen. Bruce is a drummer and dug that ten minute span of the show. They pulled out of drums with Guilded Splinters. That's the dark side of Panic that I miss. They finished the rest of Driving Song and closed the set with a heavily anticipated Chilly Water. No matter how many times I hear Chilly Water, it still makes me smile and gives me goosebumps. Unlike at the Wiltern in LA, I didn't get doused with water or a beer during the chorus.

The encore was a tad questionable. I would have dug a Conrad or Big Whooly or Barstools or how about a Cream Puff War? The first encore song was slow and mellow and they seem to play None of Us Are Free at almost every series of shows I've been to recently.

The third night at RCMH featured more extended jams with Jimmy Herring finding his way and making his own mark during classic songs such as Greta and Chilly Water. No one questioned if he could handle himself onstage. The guy can play guitar. Panic fans everywhere wondered if he would be the bridge to the old days of Panic. They're not there yet but give Herring and the boys some time to get used to one another. In a couple of months, they're going to be back on track for the first time since Mikey Houser died.

I'm pumped to see the boys in Las Vegas next month and I'm even considering trying to see them one or two more times before then!

Saturday, September 16, 2006

The boys returned to NYC for three shows at historic Radio City Music Hall to kick off their fall tour featuring new guitarist Jimmy Herring. Herring is the third (or fourth if you count John Keane's contributions) guitar player in the last few years. When Mikey Houser died, George McConnell took over. During summer tour in Colorado, I heard rumors that they were kicking George out. When I caught the Panic shows in LA, I noticed that George played exceptionally well. I suggested that he was auditioning to industry types for a future gig. Most recently, it was announced that joined the Black Crowes.

I still dunno what really happened, but Jimmy Herring is an amazing musician. I've seen him play with Phil Lesh the most and he sorta/kinda replaced Jerry Garcia in the reincarnation of The Dead. That was one of the toughest jobs in the history of music. It was like when Tino Martinez replaced Don Mattingly at first base for the Yankees. Like Tino, Jimmy Herring did better than expected.

A good old boy from North Carolina, Jimmy started playing with the Aquarium Rescue Unit which featured Col. Bruce Hampton. He's also played with the Codetalkers (along with Hampton) and with the Allman Brothers Band. When Widespread Panic announced the addition of Herring to their lineup, JW said, "A return to their southern rock roots. I love it."

Indeed I was eager to see Herring thrown into the mix. I also knew that the first few shows would have flat moments. The majority of guys on stage have been playing together for almost twenty years, so it would be natural that Herring needed time to adjust and find his own way with the band. I was spoiled for my last four Panic shows. I caught them this summer twice at Red Rocks in Colorado with the Joker. Then Nicky and I caught them in Hollyweird at the Wiltern Theatre, which I thought were raging shows.

Notes: ** Col. Bruce Hampton appeared on vocalsJohn Keane played on Pedal Steel during the first set and guitar in the second set. Jeff "Birddog" Lane sat in on percussion during drums

I went to the Friday show with Bruce. He's seen Panic a few times, mostly with me. I think his last show was at RCMH. Anyway, we had first mezzanine and that's not a bad place. The sounds gets a little fuzzy if you are off to the sides. We were smack in the middle near a few tapers and everything was solid sound wise.

The boys took the stage at 8:20pm as the late arriving crowd took their seats. Over the first half hour they progressively got better. I don't think I'd pick From The Cradle > Little Kin > Radio Child > This Part of Town as my dream openers, but a funkified Radio Child was the definite highlight in that opening segue. I particularly dig the second half of the set. I had no problems with Jack, Diner, and Blue Indian. Herring was still finding his own during those classic Panic tunes.

They closed the set with a power sandwich of Dyin Man > Makes Sense to Me > Ain't Life Grand. The first half of Aint Life Grand was all smoke even though they lost the intensity towards the end. I don't expect that to happen in future shows as Herring gets his shit together.

It was a drunk show for me as I consumed the majority of my liquor in the first set. Cocktails and beers are $8. With a $50 ticket plus Ticketbastard charges, drinking heavily at RCMH means the show costs at least $100 in all including liquor. The bar lines at setbreak are atrocious, so I made sure I got good and liquored up pre-show and during the first set.

Our area was mellow and the ushers let everyone dance and smoke freely. The mezzanine area ended up becoming general admission and you could sit or dance anywhere there was space. One guy took a few steps in and looked around.

"Who's burning down the skunky shit?" he said as he looked right at me.

I gave him my best poker face and shrugged my shoulders. An older hippie from Australia sat behind us. He was in town on holiday and stopped by the Virgin record store in Times Square. He listened to a few Panic CDs there and decided to check them out. He bought a ticket to Thursday's show. He went in cold and had a good enough time that he bought a ticket to the Friday show. The kids in front of us were under 21. One wore a Dave Matthews Band shirt and the other wore a String Cheese summer tour shirt. I gave them a little shit, but they were nice guys.

The opening of set 2 impressed me. Usually All Time Low is solid and rocking a set closer. One of the best versions I ever saw happened in NYC at the Beacon Theatre a few years ago. I saw that show with Senor. But the All Time Low > Fishwater opener was sizzling. Col. Bruce Hampton came out and sang vocals on Time is Free > Fixin' to Die. As soon as Col. Bruce took the stage, Herring had a boost in confidence. It was nice to heard some of that old southern jam-rock that I was exposed to during college.

Over the last few years, I've developed a fondness for Surprise Valley. I wanted to hear it and they played it. I could not have been happier. After drums, they finished up a tantalizing Surprise Valley and segued into crowd favorites Pilgrims > Climb to Safety.

Widespread Panic knows how to end their shows. They played two songs during the encore including Love Tractor, which I still hear from time to time on TBS as their outro music to commercials during Atlanta Braves games.

Overall, it was a fun night. Good crowd. Great sound. Amazing venue. And Jimmy Herring's addition to the band has gotten me more and more excited about seeing future shows. I he was this good during his second ever show with the band, what will he sound like at the end of the tour?

Friday, September 15, 2006

The boys from Louisville are hitting the road to support their new album Okonokos features two discs of music due out on Sept. 26th. The concert film of Okonokos will be available on DVD starting October 31st. My Morning Jacket will be opening up for Pearl Jam in Italy and England in September.

They hit the road in the US starting with Charleston, SC on November 9th and end their tour in Boston on December 2nd.

Jimmy Herring played his first show with Widespread Panic replacing George McConnell, who replace doriginal member Mikey Houser. John Keane sat in and played several songs including most of the second set. They encored with a cover of The Band's Chest Fever. My sources said it was a great show.